Strings of a spider's web
by The Black Gryphon
Summary: What does one do when your heart is screaming for one thing, your logical mind something else, and your duty as a mother another thing all together? [kyouyaharuhi][Moriharuhi]
1. Beginings

**Title:** Strings (of a spider's web)  
**Chapter:** 1/?  
**Author: **The black gryphon/Zaheela  
**Overall Rating:** PG-13  
**Chapter rating:** PG  
**Status:** Unbeta'd  
**Pairings:** Mori/Haruhi, Kyouya/Haruhi  
**Disclaimer:** Ouran host club Bisco Hatori. Thus saying, i am not her. Bottom line, Not mine... Much to my dismay...

* * *

One thing was crystal clear in the mind of Ootori Yoshio; Not a single member of his family could stomach Kyouya's wife, not even the man who set up the arranged marriage. She, Mayura, was a spiteful, wasteful, dimwitted, and completely spoiled young lady, if she could even be considered that. She may have been lovely, with her artificially enhanced lips and black hair (possibly the only untouched part of her body), but she was no more appealing then a cockroach once her mask slipped away as soon as the ring had been slipped onto her finger. Kyouya, after spending the required first night (which he had later on stated that she was neither pure or as kind as the bride's father had stated), had her shipped off to a mansion as far away from him as it was deemed polite and stated she was never to be allowed on the Ootori mansion's premises without proper warning. Yoshio applauded his heir's foresight, for the woman was much like viper in a nest of eagles; While dangerous, even she, the daft little thing, knew the dangers of angering such a powerful family. Getting rid of her at this point was of minor damage, the alliance with the woman's family had given them more then ample time to obtain the majority of the stocks and she could be cast out with nary a second thought. What troubled Yoshio was the fact that this could leave a window for some other foolish family to try to wed their daughters off his heir. It was all so troubling, and Yoshio growled softly to himself, for all this thinking was giving him a headache.

Yoshio was not a stupid man nor was he as distant to his sons as they had thought. While he may of not known the nature of the activities of the Host club, he knew that his young heir had at least unrealized fancies for one Fujioka Haruhi during high school. He also knew that those feelings had grown to a near obsession with the one woman who was able to read Ootori Kyouya (as well as the other members of the Host club). Yoshio had a feeling that somewhere those feelings had been returned by the woman in question. Ironically, the two in question were blind to the feelings for the most part, until something out of the ordinary had occurred to reveal the feelings. The aftermath was unclear, since he could not ask the young woman and his son refused to reveal the results, but he had an idea.

"Kyouya, this was one failure you could of avoided." Yoshio glanced at the folded up newspaper which the contents of minor interest except for one single article, hidden away on page three. To the everyday man, it was something of no importance their every day lives, but to Yoshio it was a sign that his plans were not at all stopped. It proved the fact that Fujioka Haruhi was still alive, well, and tearing her way into the fabric of society.

His thoughts concerning the woman could only be considered positive. Fujioka Haruhi was a very intelligent, practical, independent woman with a quick wit and a quicker tongue. Even if she lacked the breeding of the higher class, Haruhi certainly was an example of what successful business women were made from. Breeding could not be everything, as Mayura demonstrated, but what stopped Yoshio from approaching the ideal wife for his son was the fact that she was unapproachable. Something at the very end of her college education had sent Fujioka Haruhi into hiding, and while his private police may have been able to keep track of the woman and dig up her reasonings in most cases, she had obtained sanctuary from one of the few places he could not penetrate, the Morinozuka family. It was virtually impossible to send in a spy into a household bred to defend, a family that had helped teach his own private guard. A well played move, but Yoshio was not one to be defeated so easily. He was much like his heir, except he had no plans on letting the girl go so easily. After all, she was a lawyer, and as such, there would be many opportunities to approach her. Yoshio would of gloated if not for the high whine of a very annoyed woman instantly decimating any feelings of smug determination.

How DID his son handle this incorrigible, intolerable, and forth most ANNOYING woman? It made him sorry for even considering such a match in the first place.

"Oh well, at least if everything goes to plan, I will not have to deal wish such acts of childish stupidity." Yoshio murmured as his assistant announced the arrival of a Lady Mayura.

* * *

Haruhi frowned as she stared at the words written on the print out, her pen tapping against the smooth finish of her oak desk. Part of her questioned what brought her client to even approach the man in which the lawsuit was aimed against, another sympathized with her client, and the rest was screaming in alarm. It seemed that once you gave birth to a child, a woman gained that mystical seventh sense that mystified men.

"Hatori-chan, please stop trying to climb up my book case. Mori-san, could you PLEASE stop hiding behind the door and assist him in doing whatever he is attempting to do?" All of this said without a bat of an eye. The shuffling of a door and the soft footsteps signaled the entrance of the master of the Morinozuka family and a small grunt from the the young boy. The paperwork was STILL baffling her, and now that Haruhi was no longer alone, she felt the urge to rip out her hair grow stronger until a pair of small arms of a three year old wrapped around her neck.

"Mama, I'm hungry." She gave up, until later that evening at least, in favor of pay attention to her son. She turned in her chair to wrap her arms around her son, hands brushing over Mori's own before his moved away to allow Haruhi to reclaim her son.

"What would you like?" Haruhi shifted his weight as Hatori pouted and but his lip as if it was the hardest question in the world. She couldn't help but smile when his bright chocolate eyes glimmered as he came to a conclusion.

"Sukiyaki!" Laughter bubbled up and she moved to walk out the door before pausing and looking back at the man she could consider her protector.

"Would you and Hunny-san like to join us?" Haruhi wondered why she even asked, but she supposed it was only fitting.

"We would be honored." Hatori cheered as he clung to both his mother and the book he had rescued from her bookcase (truthfully, it was digging into her side) and continued down the hallways of her home. Mori had left in order to retrieve the master-in-training of the Haninozuka family, and with practiced motions, she slipped into her favorite apron. Her son clung to her pants, watching her in apt fascination as she began to prepare the vegetables. She watched her son out of the corner of her eye as he grew tired of watching her and opened up the picture book, silently mouthing the words as he lay on the floor of the kitchen. No matter how many times she told him not to, Haruhi could not convince her son to stop laying on the floor of her kitchen, so she had grown used to avoiding stepping on him.

"I suppose this is what your grandmother felt when I did the same." She muttered softly but her son heard it anyways. He had heard the story so many times and simply laughed. Her eyes softened at the sound of the laughter and she returned to her task. As she chopped the various vegetables, her mind wandered towards her future. Would Hatori ever learn the truth? It was inevitable, he was a smart boy, smarter then he honestly should have been actually. Though not a super genius, he was still able at the age of three to read and do the most basic math equations, far more advanced then most children. She could of blamed breeding, but that was a poor excuse. She left it as 'fate' and 'evolution' and did not ponder upon it much. She didn't wish to think about it much, because when she did, it always brought back memories. Memories of a night which should of never of happened, between the most unlikely of people. While the results may of given her one of the most important things in her life, it also brought the bitter taste which accompanied betrayal.

"Mama! Don't cry!" The sweet voice of her son snapped her out of her thoughts and she let the smile crawl back onto her face before placing the knife down and kneeling down so that her son, with his chubby hands, could rub a tear away.

"I'm not crying see? It was those nasty onions!" Haruhi proclaimed and wiped away any other tears that could remain with the back of her sleeve. Hatori adopted the pout for a moment, and then agreed with the cherished innocence of childhood (or at least she hoped). Ruffling his black hair, she could not help but wonder that when Kyouya was this young, if he was the same. If he had been, she once again resolved to never let her own son become like his father, a jaded man who did not realize his own feelings.

A man who left behind broken hearts, as she found out first hand.


	2. The first Thread

**Title:** Strings (of a spider's web)  
**Chapter:** 2/?  
**Author: **The black gryphon/Zaheela  
**Overall Rating:** PG-13  
**Chapter rating:** PG  
**Status:** Unbeta'd (and looking for one!!!)  
**Pairings:** Mori/Haruhi, Kyouya/Haruhi  
**Disclaimer:** Ouran host club Bisco Hatori. Thus saying, i am not her. Bottom line, Not mine... Much to my dismay...

* * *

"While it may not see like such a 'huge problem' to you, I am happy to inform you that ANY clerical error is a problem for this cooperation. Please ensure that the paperwork on the Yamaguchi cooperation will be corrected and that this will never happen again. If you are unable to do so, clear your desk immediately." With a slam, Kyouya hung up the phone and wondered if some greater force was punishing him for misdeeds in a previous life. His 'wife' was intolerable with her material based fits and his father's employees seemed to lack usable minds, and to make things worse, he could not sleep without phantoms of an obviously better past haunting him. It appeared to Kyouya that he was doomed to suffer both in the world called reality and the land of dreams. Though his father never had said it outright, Kyouya knew he had concerns about a heir being born, but that meant getting physically close to Mayura. Even the THOUGHT of getting near that shallow woman, with her overly inflated breasts and chemical puffed lips made him retch. Mayura was not beautiful, nor was she kind or in any way perfect. She was not Haruhi, the woman who plagued his dreams, lingered off the tip of his tongue; the woman he had lost. 

No one could call Kyouya an idiot when looked at from a professional point of view, but Kyouya knew that, as talented as he was, he was not perfect. Close, but even he harbored some flaws. Kyouya couldn't help but consider himself the fool for letting Haruhi slip from his arms and an even bigger fool to keep clinging to her memory. Back then, Kyouya realized, he was a fool, a god be damned fool. To think he passed off the perfect partner with thoughts of 'I need to focus on my empire' and 'She'll just be a distraction' when he had her right where he wanted her. It was true, all reason and common sense flew out the window when it applied to her, but he supposed it was a welcome loss of reality. It at least kept him reasonably sane. There was no Tamaki to lighten the mood, no Twins to insert well needed chaos when it was needed. Kyouya had lost touch with Hunny-sempai and Mori-sempai, due to 'conditions out of his control' and contact with Haruhi was near impossible. Though he had the chance to pull her aside, she had made it clear that she had no interest in whatever he had to offer. To add insult to injury, she had with sweetened words, hinted at the threat of her finding a way to bring him down from his high and mighty perch, even if was only for a moment. It would only take that moment for her to show Kyouya that she was in no way to be pushed around by a man with such a past.

"What does the cruelest mistress of all have in store for me? I wonder..." Kyouya said to the empty air as he stared at the wall before grabbing his jacket, teeth grinding, and leaving his office. He needed a stiff drink and a well-deserved rest. Maybe this time Haruhi would not come trapezing into his dreams. A voice in his mind sniggered and pointed out the obvious fact that that was impossible, but Kyouya was a man of chances.

* * *

"Mama! Can we go in to the pet store later?" Why couldn't shopping be a simple of a task like when she was living with her father?

"Mama, can I have some pocky?"

**_Why?_**

"Mama!"  
Ah right, because she didn't have to worry about sly little hands placing things into her basket. She only had to worry about her father's overeager hands, and those she could see easily. At least, when she handled the household chores.  
"Hatori, calm down." A deep voice interrupted her son's endless stream of requests and questions and silence settled back in. Haruhi envied Mori's ability to instantly calm down her over eager child, but she supposed he was imposing in that fatherly figure/older brother sort of way. It seemed odd, how Mori had always found time in his obviously busy schedule to accompany her for these minor things, shopping for the next week, taking Hatori to the park, minor things. It wasn't unwelcome, it was just strange. When she really thought about it, she supposed it was the 'protector' in him over Hatori, who she noted was trying to sneak a box of chocolate pocky into her hand basket. Well, she supposed one box would never hurt, as long as he didn't pick up Hunny's problematic sweet tooth.  
"Hatori, would you do me a favor and go with Mori-san to go the vegetable section and pick me up some spinach?" Haruhi asked of her son, who made a 'ick' face at the mention of the dreaded plant.  
"Mama, do I have to?" Hatori whined, tugging at the hem of shirt and she simple smiled a knowing smile before responding.  
"Please, for me?" Hatori sighed and then held out his hand for Mori to take and the two males set off, though Haruhi swore she could hear Hatori's whining from the vegetable section. She wore that content smile until she heard a pair of women whispering in a tone they thought she could not hear.  
"Isn't that so sweet? Don't they look like the perfect couple Minako-san?"  
"Oh I agree, they must be very happy with each other!" There was no malice, if anything it was a compliment, but the truth was apparent to Haruhi. Though to any stranger, they may look like a loving family, with Hatori inheriting her eyes and his father's dark hair, to Haruhi, it was painfully obvious that Mori was not the father. First off, the texture of the hair differed greatly. Kyouya's had been smooth and silky, like the well groomed hair on the back of a mature cat's back, while Mori's was somewhat coarser, thicker, and softer. The color was different as well, as Haruhi knew well. While Mori's was could only be considered the color of high quality black India ink, Kyouya's reflected his devious nature. The color of a raven's wing or a black jaguar were almost perfect ways to describe the color of Kyouya's hair, but not quite. Haruhi couldn't think of a proper name, but all she knew that was it was a color that whispered sleek, sly, a deep color not quite evil.  
"Here mama! Mori-san helped me pick it out!" Hatori offered the bag of spinach (Haruhi noted that it was rather small) out for her to grab and Haruhi smiled, eyes glimmering.  
"Thank you. Mmm, what should we have for dinner tonight then? Tempura? Or perhaps some dumplings?" Haruhi questioned her young son, who eagerly responded. So intent on watching her son she did not realize that there were two pairs of eyes staring at her. The pair right beside hers reflected an emotion called 'endearment' and then alarm as the owner realized that someone outside was also watching the scene with great interest. Eyes met, and Mori moved so that his body blocked Haruhi's view of the window.   
"Haruhi, You're blocking the way." Mori motioned to the woman who laughed nervously. Immediately Haruhi turned to apologize and Mori took this opportunity to stare at the unknown man. His warning was clear, Back off. The stranger turned, but Mori's sharp eyes caught the satisfied smirk on his face. Mori's face was etched with worry until Haruhi placed her hand on his elbow.  
"Is something wrong Mori-san?"  
"No."

* * *

Kyouya fell back into his bed, his mind seething and trying to figure out possible ways that he was just seeing things. He did not want to think that... It just couldn't be. 

"Dear? Is something wrong?" Mayura purred into his ear. Kyouya quickly covered his surprise and looked up to see his wife dressed up in some overly done negligee the color of a clown's nose. It made her appear like something that even Tamaki would call disgusting, but it was not the pressing issue at hand.

"Mayura, what are you doing in this mansion?" Kyouya forced a polite tone while sorting out who in his staff would have been stupid enough to let the woman in. Once he figured it out, he ensured that at the very least, the person be banned from ever setting foot in Tokyo again.

"Well daddy told me that lately you've been very stressed and I figured that maybe we could 'get to know each other better'?" The taste of bile was overpowering at the very thought of even touching any of what the woman sampled, but Kyouya understood the reasoning. Once Mayura produced a heir to the Ootori family, it would become very difficult to remove her influence from his family's dealings. All the benefits would go in favor of the Matsumori family while his family would suffer a major weak point. Cursing his father, Kyouya stood up and smiled at the woman.

"I am afraid to inform you that I am very busy at the moment. If you could please kindly leave, I'll.."

"Don't give me any of that bullshit!" Mayura suddenly snapped, her face suddenly contorting into something out of a horror film. "You have been avoiding me for 2 years since our wedding night. Need I remind you that we are MARRIED? Do you not realize how many men would fling themselves at my feet if I was not?"

Kyouya felt his tolerance for such a shallow woman strain. "Need I remind you that our marriage was not romantic in any way but political? There is no intimacy or love involved. I have made this clear, I have no interest in a woman such as yourself, and further more, you have no right to demand anything from me. On paper, we may be married, but in reality, you have no other role then to act like a suitable wife. Which I may note, you have failed at miserably." Kyouya's calm appearance barely hid his disgust with the woman laying on his sheets. "Do not think I don't know about your many lovers over these two years. I only played ignorant since it seemed to distract you from trying to approach me. You are testing my patience, and I am sure you are aware of the consequences of angering the Ootori family. Now leave."

Mayura sputtered and seemed to wish to lunge at the man standing before her before her cowardly nature reared it's head. With a huff, she gathered her coat from where she had thrown it on a chair and headed for the door.

"Don't think this is over, 'dear'." With that, Mayura stormed out of the cold mansion and waited for her driver to appear. Once settled in the comforts of her limo, she let a sly smile slide onto her face. Her dear 'husband' was irritated, she wondered why. Her hand slipped into her handbag and retrieved the report from her own little spy.

"Well now, I'll just have to see into this Fujioka Haruhi." She eyed the woman in the picture. "She'll be very useful in breaking that detested husband of mine. I wonder, though..." Mayura frowned at the picture. The woman was obviously a mother, she had that aura around her, but she was plain. Long, flowing chestnut hair, small pert lips, a pair of breasts that were not large but not too small, thin waist, slight hips, and the most expressive brown eyes ever. Hardly anything worth a second glance. "Just what makes this woman so important?"

* * *

**ANs: **Still looking for a beta ;;. Quite honestly i'm torn with who ends up with the girl. I'm in favor of both and maybe even throwing in the twins in the running (highly unlikely), but it's so hard to figure it out. -sigh- and sorry, but updates will be somewhat slow since I want to get this plot down correctly, not quickly, and I'm also trying to make the chapters longer, so do bear with me X.x. I do appreciate the reviews, (actually I adore them) and again, I am in need of a beta. If you're interested, please contact me at: 

AIM: darktundrawolf or MSN: zaheela at hotmail (dot) com (DAMN YOU DOCUMENT EDITOR! -Angry growl-) Ok, back to work on chapter 3 T-T

Oh, as a note... I Hate ff net's document editor...


	3. The Second thread

**Title:** Strings (of a spider's web)  
**Chapter:** 3/?  
**Author: **The black gryphon/Zaheela  
**Overall Rating:** PG-13  
**Chapter rating:** PG-13  
**Status: **Beta'd by Cybridolmink  
**Pairings:** Mori/Haruhi, Kyouya/Haruhi  
**Disclaimer:** Ouran host club Bisco Hatori and I doubt anyone would have it any other way. Not like I can draw anyways!

* * *

"Neeee, Haru-sempai!" Even with her doors closed, the loud wail could be heard from the hall. Biting down a groan, Haruhi gently closed her laptop before the door was slammed open. Luckily, the protective pad that Haruhi had installed stopped the brass handle from smashing a hole into the wall. As if the hounds of hell was chasing her, a petite, brunette woman burst into Haruhi's office. With a quick glance, the young woman's blue eyes locked onto their target and her hands darted forward to grab the hand of her senior and drag her out of her comfortable, warm leather chair. Haruhi smiled softly at the young woman for a moment before her smile changed into a frown.

"Taisuke-san..." She began, only to have the woman cut her off.

"How many times did I tell you, call me Ayame!" Puffing out her cheeks, Ayame glared at her senior, who merely rolled her eyes. The one sided glaring match continued for a moment before a huge grin broke out on Ayame's face and she resumed her tugging.

"You simply MUST have lunch with Kai-sempai and I!" Ayame pleaded, her large brown eyes watery and her lip pressed out in a pout. Normally such a combination would send anyone's objections down the drain (A pity that such tactics couldn't be effectively used in the courtroom), but Haruhi merely frowned. Being a mother, as well as having an overly cute friend, granted immunities to things like puppy dog eyes and pouting lips.

"I have to finish sorting my previous cases before 3pm today. Besides, I already packed a Bento lunch." Haruhi stated, pulling her hand from Ayame's death grip and motioning to the wrapped box on the end of her desk. Ayame's pout slowly changed into a smirk.

As if she had been waiting for the words to escape from Haruhi's mouth, Ayame magically whipped out a small white container. "That's perfect then! Kai-sempai and I just ordered some takeout from the local eatery and was planning to eat it in my office. Since you don't need to go to the cafeteria today, that means you can join us!"

"It wasn't my idea." A soft voice could be heard as an embarrassed looking gentleman entered Haruhi's office.

"Sure! Blame it on the helpless little girl!" Ayame retorted, sticking out her tongue, letting out a little 'harump' under her breath. Haruhi chuckled softly and the man outside her door smiled before closing the door behind him.

"If you're helpless, then I'm the emperor of Timbuktu." He retorted as his embarrassed look melted away into a warm smile.

Himura Kaisuke, a man who's gentle nature belittled the incredibly sharp tongue he possessed. The said man ruffled his black hair and sat down on one of the seats normally reserved for her clients setting down his small box. Ayame cheerfully dragged the other spare chair so that it stood at the edge of her desk, she wanted to ensure that she could trip Haruhi the moment she tried to escape as well as face the both of them while they ate. With a sigh, Haruhi gave in and moved her laptop out of the way taking out her wrapped lunch.

"So, has anyone heard about why Yammy-sempai snapped at his idiotic client yesterday?" Ayame broke the silence as she stabbed her plastic spork into the freshly baked shepherds pie. For a moment, Kaisuke looked thoughtful before nodding.

"He told me that it was because the man had insisted that he had the right to beat his wife." With a snort, Kaisuke took a bite of his own meal, loosening his tie with his free hand. Haruhi's chopsticks had stopped their accent, her eyes catching that simple movements and her ears suddenly becoming muffled. She didn't want to care anymore, so she had forced herself to ignore it. However when you were in love, it seemed that there were things you remembered, even if you never remembered watching it before. There were times Haruhi wished that she could just forget those little things...

_He had always loosened his tie whenever he was relaxed._

"Haru-sempai? Haru-sempai!"

"Hmmm? Fujioka-san, Is something wrong?" Haruhi jumped a little bit, but luckily her chopsticks had refused to let the piece of fried fish ruin her skirt.

"Just thinking." Both of her unwelcome guests knew not to press on the issue.

"Anyways, so I hear we're going to get a big client later on today. Oh I do hope that it's a handsome, single, guy..." Ayame began to chirp. Haruhi couldn't help but smile as the gloomy atmosphere lifted, and in the back of her mind she wondered if Hatori was alright.

* * *

"Lately we have been seeing improvement, but unfortunately there is not much else we can do at this point." The doctor said with little to no emotion in the tone. Haruhi just nodded as she took in all the new (pointless) information before asking if it was alright to visit today. With a nod, Haruhi found herself traveling down white, sterile hallways. The smell of disinfectant was comforting in it's own strange way, but the moment she touched the icy cold handle of the door, her loathing for this particular ward came roaring back. Opening the door, she smiled brightly.

"So how are you today?" The silence was deafening.

"I won another case today." The soft hiss of the machine next to her was ignored.

"Hatori misses you... We all miss you." The figure laying in the bed blinked, and turned his head, staring blankly at her. Eying the drool coming from the corner of his mouth, Haruhi's smile slipped just a bit before she pulled a tissue free from the little pack she carried, and began to clean his face.

"Honestly, sometimes you are so troublesome." It was at this point she realized her hand was shaking, but she merely forced herself to calm down. She avoided looking into the blank eyes of her father, because she knew if she did, then she wouldn't be able to stop the tears. Crying was pointless now, because unlike years ago, there would be no warm arms to comfort her, everyone who could was gone after all. Like many times before, Haruhi's mind wandered back to that horrendous day of which her father was robbed of his life and she cast off any doubts of choices for the future.

She left the hospital shortly after, her eyes cloudy with unshed tears and her shoulders slumped. Turning the corner, she thought she heard someone call out her name and lifted her gaze from the pavement. Glancing behind her, she saw Mori calmly walking towards her and a sleek black car parked at the curve. Apparently she had walked right past her friend and his driver, for which she became mortified over.

"Sorry about that Mori-san. I guess I just had some things on my mind." Haruhi said apologetically and Mori just shrugged before reaching down and wrapping his hand around her own. The feel of his rough skin against her own was comforting to her senses. She ignored the little spark of disappointment when he let go of her hand to let the driver take her briefcase. Mori focused his attention on her once more and motioned for her to enter the backseat first and then climbed in once she had settled down in her seat. The car door closed and she leaned back into the soft leather seats focusing her gaze on the ceiling. A warm hand once again clasped her own, his right over her left. He then, as gently as he could, pulled her into an odd hug, pressing her face against his chest. Warm arms wrapped around her, as if encouraging her to cry, but she refused to do so. She just lay in his arms, feeling her worries, her tears, and her silent suffering fade away in the feeling of brotherly affection he offered. What had replaced all those feelings was a heavy urge to drown in the nothingness of sleep, which she eagerly gave into. In that sleep of nothingness, she dreamed of the horrid night where she had faced a fateful decision.

* * *

Haruhi knew that her father's unique life style was not looked favorably upon. There were times where that irrational hate escalated to threats, however she never thought that the people would go so far as to do it physically. She opened the door to find her father being ruthlessly beaten by a pack of strangers, she was shocked to say the least. Her mind was screaming and she did the only thing a loving child would of done in that situation; She lunged for the nearest punk. A cry of pain and a fist to the stomach ended their attempts to beat her father to death, but it only redirected their attention to herself. They crowded around her, much like hyenas circling an injured gazelle, but a strong hand had stopped the first of the many fists aiming for her. When she had heard the cry of pain, she dared to peek upwards, only to find Honey standing over her, protecting her. She could almost imagine the dark, imposing, and downright frighting aura swirling around the short man. Some of the punks had darted out the door, only to be blocked by an equally imposing Mori.

"Takashi, they're mine." Honey had stated, but by the look on Mori's face, Haruhi ventured to guess that he was half tempted to disobey that order. Honey launched himself at the nearest person, sending the boy crashing into the nearest solid wall. Haruhi then took the moment to check on her father. Blood was dripping from a deep gash on his forehead and his pupils were dilated to almost inhuman amounts. Even though she wasn't trained in any form of medical aide, Haruhi knew instinctively that something was wrong. Her hands darted for her pockets and pulled out a small pink cell phone and began to press the number pad. The next few hours were a blur, rational thought a wisp in a harsh wind, and any feeling of hope crushed by the bitter reality. Haruhi knew, somewhere in the pit of her stomach, that her father would not come out unscathed. Indeed, the incident was the prologue to much anguish, but her story was not a tragedy or some sappy romance story.

Lack of oxygen to the brain, that was how they termed it. To Haruhi, all it meant was that her father was gone. His body was still there, but his mind was locked away. She had broken down, for the second time in her life Haruhi Fujioka could not think straight. She barely realized that she was picked up off the cold hospital floor and carried to a warm limo. In retrospect, she imagined that seeing a young blond who was obviously MUCH shorter then herself carrying a sobbing young woman as if she weighted no more then a single feather was strange. Next thing she knew she was being settled down in her apartment, arms wrapping around her. The blood was wiped away, but the crater of impact still remained. For a while, she took comfort in the warmth around her, but she knew that now with her father in that condition, life would become harder. How could she, a full time law student, balance a full time job required to keep her an apartment, her studies, and the hospital bills that were most likely going to pile up?

"Haru-chan... What now?" Honey questioned as he lay down, his head in her lap.

"What?" Haruhi blinked, not trusting her own voice.

"What are you going to do now? I'm sure that Tama-chan or Kyou-chan could..."

"No." Haruhi snuggled deeper into the arms encircling her. She shut her eyes, afraid that her eyes would betray the fact that Kyouya had abandoned her in a sense.

"You'll be staying with me." Both Honey and herself had made a startled noise staring up at the stern sword master. Mori didn't say anything afterwards, but they could tell; He was dead serious.

"I'm going to pay rent... somehow..." Haruhi sulked slightly, but Honey smiled that secret little smile snuggling his head into her lap. They spoke of an old guest house on the Morinozuka property which they could loan out to her and an adequate compromise for a 'rent' payment. How long she stayed was up to her, however she didn't have to worry about opposition. After all, she did have the backing of not only the heirs of the two clans, but the younger siblings who cherished her as much as their brothers did. How soon she would move, how she would commute, what she could do, many things were planned and argued about. They had to remind her many times that she was not 'taking advantage' of them, that they had offered, and that to them, she was like family.

Sleep evaded her that night, however, as she leaned against Mori's chest and gently stroked Honey's silky hair. That night she had thought of her choices, her past, and her future. She wasn't the type of woman to be content with crying in the arms of some man. If she were to reach her dreams, she had to stand. She had to stand against the harsh wind of a future filled with uncertainty. She, as a woman, had to claw her way into the world of men, to protect those who could not. Haruhi would fight, to save those who suffered, who would suffer, who did not want to suffer. Like a phoenix, she would rise from this tragedy and take it all in, refusing to bend to the crippling pain and continue to fight. The next morning, she had slipped out of the comforting arms and watched the sunrise, her eyes focused and clear. She would fight, because if she didn't, then she wouldn't be able to protect a single thing.

* * *

**AN: **Most annoying chapter yet... -sigh- chapter four should be up soon, and for those of you who remember my previous fanfiction "a Piece of insanity", the second part is in the works... I've got a few sketches of Hatori lying around, but anyways, thanks to Cybridolmink for being my beta. 


	4. Gathering of Dew

**Title:** Strings (of a spider's web)  
**Chapter:** 4/?  
**Author: **The black gryphon/Zaheela  
**Overall Rating:** PG-13  
**Chapter rating:** G  
**Status:** Unbeta'd  
**Pairings:** Mori/Haruhi, Kyouya/Haruhi  
**Disclaimer:** Ouran host club Bisco Hatori. Thus saying, i am not her. Bottom line, Not mine... Much to my dismay...

* * *

Haruhi frowned as she stared at the stray cats her son had brought in, a pair of twin cats, complete with sly grins, evil intentions, and a coil of rope in hand.  
"Hikaru, Kaoru, just what are you doing here?" Haruhi half heartedly asked, the look on her face screaming 'why do I even bother with you?' "And why in the world do you have rope?"  
"To abduct you in case you refuse our request." Hikaru cheerfully replied, the sly look remaining in place.  
"Request?"  
"If our memories are correct, recently you were asked to escort us to a gathering of your social betters." Kaoru supplied, the smirk somewhat irritating her. Haruhi leaned against the door frame, her fingers tapping against her upper arm.  
"I recall stating that I didn't want to go."  
"Ah, that's why we have the rope." Said rope was presented to the rather pissed off lawyer.  
"And you're aware that this is an serious offense punishable by law?"  
"Since when do we care?" Damn infuriating twins...  
"You should. You are aware that there is a child in the room and I have no sitter on hand, and I very much doubt that I would entrust you with watching over my residence." A brief memory of when she had foolishly left the devious hell spawn alone in her house with her son. There were still scorch marks behind her new oven.  
"We have that taken care." Both of their eyebrows wriggled in glee at some sort of secret kept between the two of them.  
"No." Haruhi turned, intent on leaving the two standing there when she discovered moving with your own offspring wrapped around your legs was near impossible to do. Her balance lost, she felt herself fall backwards, only to be wrapped by two pairs of arms. Hatori giggled as Kaoru quickly took the offered opportunity to tightly bind Haruhi's arms to her sides. WHEN they had convinced her little angel to turn to the dark side she didn't know, but she was sure that when she got home, Hatori would regret it. (A little voice inside of her stated otherwise.)  
"We'll bring your mom back safe and sound, Tori-chan! Make sure to let Hunny in when he comes over alright?" Hikaru yelled out as he threw his reluctant baggage over his shoulder. Haruhi wriggled with all her might, but she was slight in weight and Hikaru was more physically fit then he looked.  
"The cookies are hidden in the cabinet by the sink!" Kaoru revealed, earning a cry of glee from the young boy, who promptly slammed the door once the location of the much coveted cookies were revealed. Haruhi gave up at that point, her eyes glaring at the twin she could see.  
"Rich bastards." She muttered. Kaoru just smiled.

A few unbearable hours later, Haruhi was standing in the middle of a lavish ballroom. The topaz earrings she wore felt like seven pound weights, and her skull was being impaled by roughly two dozen jeweled pins. Wearing a simple silk dress the color of sakura petals, she felt very out of place. Perhaps dress wasn't the most accurate term for what she wore, but being less then knowledgeable in the terminology of fashion gave her the right to call the Hitachiin creation she wore whatever she wanted. It was rather discomforting, having one shoulder left bare while the other had the ends to the cloth buttoned together, the extra cloth fluttering over her shoulder every time she moved. It wasn't a princess dress, since the skirt didn't sport the extra fluff, lace, ribbons, sequins, bead work, or numerous layers of cloth, but it did flare outwards somewhat. The hem of the dress barely brushed against the ground, and to finish the whole mess up, a simple gold rope was tied around her waist. On anyone else, Haruhi was sure the dress would have been stunning, simple yet flattering the figure, but on her it was like sticking a peacock feather on the tail of a common house cat. She squirmed a bit, the cool silk of her dress and dress gloves chilling her body, but she remained rooted to the spot.

Perhaps she could see what delicacies were lined up on the buffet table.

"HARUHIIIII!" Or not... Haruhi calmly sidestepped as a blond blur streaked by, hugging the pillar she had been leaning on instead. She frowned, cursing the man as all eyes turned on the spectacle in the corner of the ballroom. Suoh Tamaki, the heir of the Suoh conglomerate, was hugging a poor defenseless pillar as the woman who had narrowly dodged death watched with indifference.  
"Tamaki-san. It's been a while hasn't it?" She said, though her smile was strained. While she was a tad irritated with his foolish antics, part of her was glad to have someone so familiar in a crowd of strangers.  
"Daddy has been so worried about you! It's been ages since we last talked over the phone." He cried as he wrapped his arms around the slender woman.  
"We talked over the phone last week." Haruhi pointed out, her eyes scanning the room for a plausible savior.  
"But, it's been a WEEK! Daddy can't help but worry about his precious daughter!" Haruhi fought back a smile as memories plagued her, and she finally broke down. Their conversations always started like this, Tamaki overreacting over the short periods of separation, and her being stubborn until one of them finally caved in. They talked about many things, of her recent cases, his problems with his grandmother, and various things occurring in their lives. Sometimes, Haruhi wondered why she couldn't of fallen for a man like him, a warm, optimistic man, but she always rationalized that he would have eventually driven her insane. She just couldn't see herself married to him, as hard as he tried to get her to love him beyond the love a friend has for one another.

"I heard that you turned down another marriage proposal." Haruhi said, her eyes focused on the ceiling of the ball room.  
"Are you jealous?" Tamaki questioned eagerly, edging towards her and draping a warm arm around her partially bare shoulders. Her eyes traveled down to where his arm lay and calmly pinched his hand.  
"No." Haruhi sighed softly as Tamaki huddled down, hugging his knees and once against causing several eyes to turn in their direction. Several murmurs could be heard and Haruhi knew that later that week several 'interesting' rumors would be circling the tabloids. It was interesting to see how people interpreted their relationship. Very few people, other then the host club anyways, knew that Tamaki was the closest thing to her father and even though Haruhi felt like she could trust him completely. However, because of his close ties to Kyouya, and the fact that he was very prone to accidentally blurting out secrets, the one topic they never talked about was Hatori. Tamaki had no idea that the young boy existed and was the only one, other then the father himself, to not know of Haruhi's predicament concerning children in the original Host club.

"Grandmother wants me to marry within the year, what should I do?" Bemoaned Tamaki, his showy nature once again appearing, but before Haruhi could reply with a snarky reply, her hand was roughly grabbed and her body twirled onto the dance floor. Her head spinning and her dress flaring around her ankles, she blindly allowed whoever had pulled her away from (the now fuming) Tamaki, to guide her into the first form of whatever dance was required. Blinking once, then twice, she stared into the eyes of a rather impish looking Hikaru.  
"Couldn't you of just asked for a dance like a NORMAL gentleman?" Haruhi muttered as she glared at Hikaru.  
"That wouldn't be any fun, now would it?" Was Hikaru's reply as they twirled around the dance floor. They merged into the crowds,stepped into the flow of the beautiful music from ancient composers, and were soon lost in a world of rhythm and joy.

Tamaki seethed as he watched one of the twins waltz off with his beloved daughter but then paused as he heard another body lean against the pillar.  
"Kyouya, is something wrong?" Tamaki, for once, decided to cut to the chase. He heard the shift of cloth as muscles tensed.  
"Nothing that I am aware of. What makes you think that something happened?" Kyouya replied, his voice cold and his eyes focused on the distant wall.  
"Well, first of all, your not in the crowd with all the future business partners. Secondly, you're not dancing with Haruhi, which I add, wouldn't hurt." Tamaki calmly pointed out, hiding a frown as his friend refused to budge from his place against the pillar. Both men watched as Haruhi was passed from one of the twin's possessive arms to his twin's similarly possessive embrace. Tamaki eyed Kyouya and his grip on his sleeve, but decided against mentioning anything about it. He knew that for all his knowledge and cunning ways, Kyouya was somewhat lacking in experience when it came to indulging in random impulses.

"It wouldn't kill you, now would it? What gentleman denies a sweet maiden to live out her inner most fantasies? Though, I do see your wife," though all the sweet talking and princely mannerisms couldn't hide the hint of discomfort in using the word, "Looking for possible dance partners over there. Perhaps a dance with her to further your relationship?"  
"I'm afraid that my consort is too busy trying to get acquainted with the son of the councilman. As for Haruhi, I am well aware that you know that she and I no longer have a relationship." Kyouya replied, adjusting his glasses for a moment. A sure sign that he was uncomfortable. Tamaki could no longer hide his frown and pushed himself off the pillar and placing his hands in his pockets. Before he left for the dance floor, he turned his head slightly towards Kyouya.  
"A dance between friends and potential business partners is just a dance, it's not like you're declaring your love for her, _again_. Besides, since you two were in a relationship, does that not mean that your two shared feelings of love? Does love die that easily?" With that, Tamaki left his scowling friend and decided to rescue his daughter from the wandering hands of a devil. He'd have nothing to worry about, like a lawsuit or a forceful corporate take over, or something more physical like a table to the head... He hoped anyways.

Outwardly, Kyouya showed no signs of any emotional disturbance, but inwardly, he was seething. How DARE Tamaki, that idiot among idiots, suggest something as impractical as lingering regrets about breaking his relationship with Haruhi. Didn't Haruhi turn down Tamaki when he tried to pursue his own relationship with the young woman? It wasn't like there was anything to gain from such a marriage. As a lawyer, she would be driven by her honor not to get involved in the legal issues of the various Ootori businesses, and if she was asked to take a case against them, she would have an insider's advantage. A weakness in every way. He refused to acknowledge the little voice in the back of his head with countered his every excuse. As a lawyer, he would be able to consult her about various legal issues, not to mention she was practical, frugal, far more intelligent, and actually HONEST, unlike that simpering excuse of a wife he currently sported. It was no secret that he had no love of his wife, but she was his legal wife, and by divorcing her and suddenly marrying another woman, or even worse, having an affair while married, would send the mass media crawling all over it like ants over a pile of sugar. A headache he would rather avoid. Then why was he heading over to steal Haruhi away from Tamaki?

Well, he could consider this Tamaki's punishment.

Haruhi was honestly surprised when her hand was grasped tightly by someone standing behind her and Tamaki began to back away, a look of dread in his eyes. Glancing over her shoulder, she made a small noise of surprise before Kyouya had twirled her around and forced her to take a step forward. Shakily, she followed his steps.  
"What..." Haruhi leaned back slightly, one of her hands trapped in Kyouya's iron grip and a strong hold on her hip. Silence lingered between the two like the space between their bodies. Fear crawled through her like frost on a windowsill as her mind began to formulate plausible reasons that Kyouya would practically steal her from Tamaki. She expected such a move from Hikaru, or perhaps Honey if he had been here, but as far as she knew, Hunny was back at home with her son. She struggled to figure out a plausible reason why, but the only reason she could think of was that, in some way, he had found out. Before she could properly panic, his cool voice soothed her nerves.  
"Surely you aren't afraid of me, are you Fujioka-san?" Kyouya smoothly teased, that infamous smirk on his face. His tone didn't hint at any hidden anger or frustration, and his smirk wasn't the one he normally sported when he was planning some sort of devious plan. Haruhi felt her fear slip away before a gentle smile appeared on her face and she tightened her grip on his hands.  
"I'm just worried about you finding a way to bill me for taking up your time while dancing with you Kyouya-san." Haruhi teased back, unconsciously edging a bit close to her dance partner. Kyouya noted this slight change in distance and a kinder smile appeared on his face for a moment.  
"Don't worry, if anything, Tamaki will be paying the fees for my lost time." Haruhi couldn't help but laugh softly.  
"Then perhaps I should optimize my time with you then?" Kyouya didn't know how to answer that, but his grip on her waist grew tighter, as if he was ensuring that she remained with him as long as possible. If Haruhi noticed, she didn't react to it and they continued to dance.  
"Are you planning on raising a family soon? I'm sure that your mother is eagerly awaiting her to meet her future grandchildren." Haruhi said innocently, her eyes staring straight forward, focused on memorizing the pattern of his silk tie.  
"It's a possibility." Kyouya replied, ice creeping into his tone as he mentally cringed with the thought of touching his 'wife' in such a way. 'I'd rather suffer trying to seduce a cactus then getting near that poor excuse of a woman.' He mentally growled in his mind, the bitter taste of bile growing stronger. Haruhi laughed nervously, apparently realizing that such a topic was not exactly safe ground to tread on. From the corner of her eye, she observed the lovely lady who had the fortunate, or unfortunate depending on how you looked at it, honor of being Ootori Kyouya's wife. 'She certainly is a social butterfly... With anything that is male anyways.' She was a tall, pale beauty, with generous hips, full lips, and overflowing breasts, but there something about her that rang false. Something... It was on the tip of her tongue.

Kyouya watched her, ignoring the urge to remind her that she had missed a step, and his eyes painted a trail to what she was watching and then smiled. Like before, he knew what she had been thinking about and decided to save her the headache.  
"Fake?" Kyouya suddenly said, snapping Haruhi out of her musings. Her eyes darted upwards to catch his own and saw that his eyes were staring into her own.  
"Kyouya?"  
"Her beauty can only be described as fake or man-made Haruhi." Kyouya continued, his eyes still focused on her own. If she were the romantic type, Haruhi would of sword she saw traces of yearning and loneness in those onyx depths. Haruhi was puzzled; She couldn't understand why Kyouya was staring at her like he wanted her to understand something, something important. It memorized her. They had stopped dancing, the world faded away from them, and Haruhi couldn't help but cling to the feeling.  
"..._Kyouya_..."  
She murmured before realizing just HOW she had said it and then closed her eyes, a reflex. "Kyouya-san, I wasn't aware that there was a dance where one just stood still in the middle of dance floor."

Kyouya's face would of shown signs of surprise and suppressed attraction when he heard his name roll off her tongue if he hadn't been trained to keep his mask on regardless of the situation. It was like a smooth brandy, blazing though his veins and sending a surge of lust and possession through his blood, but he rationalized with the feelings and shoved them away into the corners of his mind where the rest of his humanity was confined and simply smiled.  
"There isn't, but I suppose that we should conform to the current trend and continue our dance." Once again, he lead her into the dance, and once again the world seemed to blur and mesh together. Past hostilities seemed non existent as they chatted as if they were simply old comrades of some tragic war. Years of weariness and stress seemed flow from their shoulders as minutes passed and restrained impulses were let loose. More then once, he had smiled as they talked of their days in the host club, the memories pleasant. It seemed easier to laugh when he recalled her debt.  
"You have to admit, that vase wasn't really that eye catching." Haruhi pointed out.  
"Ah, but the name attached to such a garish vase such as that demanded such a price tag." Kyouya paused, however, when he noticed a waiter quickly walking up to them.  
"Fujioka-sama, I regret to inform you that there has been an accident." Those were the only words needed to send Haruhi running out of the ball room like Cinderella, her eyes frantic. The twins exchanged a look and chased after the fleeing Haruhi, leaving the room to whisper amongst themselves.

Indeed, what could send THE Fujioka Haruhi, who was known to keep her cool no matter how intimidating the opponent was, running out the door as if her world was about to collapse? Indeed, that was the very question that ran through Kyouya's mind as he watched her flee. He turned to ask the waiter of what had happened, but the man had disappeared, leaving Kyouya to curse softly and walk out to the balcony where he watched Haruhi dash into a black car, coat in her arms and the twins shouting a silent command as they climbed into the car after her.  
"It's these moments when the prince should chase after his princess." Tamaki said as he stood behind Kyouya.  
"Then why aren't you?" Kyouya snapped back, his hand curling into a fist against his side. His night ruined, Kyouya didn't feel like keeping up a polite face, especially since it was Tamaki addressing him with such stupid sentimental ideas. Tamaki frowned and then turned his head to stare at his friend.   
"Because I lost my right be be her prince a long time ago, or did you forget that? Not that I wouldn't refuse her offer if she did, but..." Tamaki paused, taking in a deep breath before continuing, "Why are you giving up on her? The Kyouya I knew wouldn't settled for 'what ifs'." Something snapped, but Kyouya reigned in the urge to growl.  
"That's because there was no merit to continuing out relationship." Tamaki laughed humorlessly for a moment.  
"Since when did it become so easy to place a price tag on emotions?" Tamaki trailed off and turned to head out the door, his blond bangs hiding his eyes. And he left, leaving Kyouya to muse over his thoughts.

* * *

**Author's Note: ** Sorry for the late post, this was actually finished over 2 weeks ago, but after a week for waiting for my beta, I suppose i got impatient.

newblue, Laughingriceball, Makka-na-yuki, Xan, Hopeless Romantic, Dragon of blood

Anonymous 3, Rangerette, ColourfulKyouya-SenpaiMaybeNot, seelieseduction, Animefreak03: Awww, thank you :3

Quill and Saber: -; i'm not planning to put it back in Livejournal unless to archive it later. ..; Maybe I should...

GoGothGirl: Well at least I know i'm doing my job XD As the story goes on, I expect people to LOATHE her, but not for the reasons you'd expect from this point.

Crashx: As chapter 4 explains, no he does not, but don't worry, you know the drama gods won't let that be untouched for long...

Hana: I am not opposed to it as much as you'd think, and I consider to the cannon pairing of the series, along with twins/haruhi. I just don't like writing it because I find it common, and It's not in my nature to write things that are overly common(though I conceed to the point that my plot is unoriginal in it's core). I also see that other characters are more suited for haruhi due to certain traits. It's my choice to write it


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